Refrigerator car



Dec. 4, 1928. 1,693,815

G. A. HULL REFRIGERATOR CAR Filed March 14, 1927 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 adapted to receive a sill 29 which is. fixed to the floor of the car, and the lower end of the bulkhead sections may be supported upon said sill and channel by a plurality of shoes 30 comprising pressed metal members having an upwardly extending flange 31, a foot or laterally extending flange 32, downwardly extending flanges 33 on both sides of the channel 25, and an aflixing flange 34 through which the bolts 35 may be passed to fix said shoes to the channelled legs 22 of the metal bulkhead sections.

The ice compartment 12 may beprovided with an ice grating 36 which is remo-vably supported between a pair of channelled members 37, the separate sections of grating .36 being locked. in. place by locking one of the sections 38 with a hook member 39 passing about a pin-40 and fixed by a bolt 41 under neath the grating. The icegrating 36 comprises a plurality of metal members having air spaces between. the same which are adapted'to support. the ice and at the same time permit circulation of the air about the same through the apertures between thev grating.

The'complete details bf this ice compartment construction are disclosed in my co; pending application, Serial No, 86,714, filed February 8., 1926,-for.grate construction of ice compartments of refrigerator cars, and

the exact details of the ice compartment construction are not important except as they cooperate with the features of the present invention. It is, however, essential that the details of the ice compartment be 'such that the gratingand other parts of the ice compartment are burglarproo f, and that adequate provision be made for the passage of airiinto the ice compartment at theibase thereof between the legs 22 and theicegrating 36.

' The metal bulkhead sections 15 are'customarily covered/from the point 21 above the legs 22to'a'2point 42 below the upper ventilatbeing cooled, and passing to the-bottom of the car, 'whereupon air .from'the refrigerator car proper passes in at the ventilating openings 43,-and-the air from the ice compartment passes rout between-the legs 22 of the bulk- I i head: It willuibe observed that as. most. re-

frigerator cars depend fortheir air;- -.circulation upon this. simple :method .ofn atural co-nvection currents-fit highly importantithat r a sufficient area of ventilating openings be provided so that .there is a minimum resistance to the flow of the air through the bulkhead and ice compartment.

This area of ventilating openings is adequately supplied at t-hebase of the bulkhead by removing the web of the metal sections 15 between the legs 22, the interior of the refrigerator car still being inaccessible to burgiais from the ice compartment by reason of the ice grating 36. At the upper end of the metal bulkhead sections 15, however, it is found that a maximum of ventilating area cannot be secured by the usual method of punching holes in the web 19-without weakening the metal sections 15 by the removal of metal therefrom, and my invention corn templates the provision of ventilatingopenings' in the metal sections 15 without .-weak.- ening these sections by the removal of metal, but on the contrary actually strengthening the same by the provision. of a plurality of flanges extending at rightangles to: the web 19 of the metal sections 15. a 4

In order to accomplish this result the metal sections 15 may be subjected to the following process of providing ventilating openings The sections 15 are provided with a plurality of longitudinal slits extending from the point 42, which is the top of the wooden bulkhead wall 44, to a point 45 slightly spaced from the upper flange 20. While these slitsmay be made in other directions, they are preferably vertical so that the ventilating openings formed thereby may not present flat horizontal surfaces capable of accumulating dust or other matter, and the slits above mentioned are made at regularly spaced intervals 46 extending completely across the webof the metal section 15. I I

The strips of metal 47 lyingbetweeflthe slits 46 are then bent at right anglestoathe plane of the web 19,.asshown in; Figs, 53 and 4, the major portion ofthe, bendbeing located at each. end 48 of: the strips ,Tm.

distance between the slits, 46 should,- preferably be such that the strips 47 will bespaced a distance through which the hand or wrist cannot be passed, but this spacingimay be varied considerably, depending .on the nature of the conditions in each case.

The ventilating openings :thusgformed without removing any metal from thebulkhead; section. l5,provide afmaxiinum area of ventilation, comprising the spacebetween the outermost slits, reducedonly bythe-t hicln ess of therespective metalfstrips 47, which-latter quantity is negligible. The burglar proof qualities of the bulkhead arcractually in? creased by forming ventilating openings in this manner, as theme/ital. strips4Z-act-in a measure like the flanges 16,;17-and 18 ofthe channelledsection 15, reinforcingthe metal sections in a longitudinal direction, anditijs suflicient to provide ventilating openings such as have ust been described without any bracing or reinforcing means. lVhere the slits 46 are of great length, or Wherever it is desirable for other reasons to reinforce the same, this may be accomplished by providing a transverse strip of strap steel 48 which is corrugated, as shown in Fig. 3, with a plurality of ridges 49 and valleys 50, thereby forming a plurality of grooves 51 which are so located that when the strap 48 is fixed upon the metal section 15, the strips 47 have their edges in the grooves 51, being reinforced thereby so that they cannot be bent in a lateral direction to force the strips 47 apart.

If desired, the strap 48 may pass across the edges of the strips 4-7 on one side of the metal section 15, but I prefer to form the strap 48 so that half of the strips 47 have one edge in the grooves 51, while the balance of the strips 4? have their opposite edge in the grooves 51. The strap 48 thus has a number of corrugated grooves 51 formed in it, corresponding to half the number of the strips 47, after which the strap i8 passes diagonally to the other side of the metal sectibn 15, having a plurality of corrugated grooves 51 formed to cooperate with the opposite edges of the renl'ainder of the strips 47. It will thus be observed that when the strap 48 is riveted to the metal section 15 at each end, as at 53, it is impossible to bend the strap 48 away from the edges of the strips 47 sufiiciently to defeat its purpose, both ends of the strap l8 being firmly held against the strips 47 by the diagonal portion 52.

It will thus be observed that I have invented a method of forming ventilating openings in metal bulkhead sections which provides a maximum degree of ventilating area without weakening said metal sections by the removal of metal therefrom, and that in so providing a maximum ventilating area I have retained all of the burglar proof qualities of the refrigerator car and ice compartment disclosed in my prior application above mentioned. My method of forming ventilating openings or burglar proof grilles is capable of many other applications, and I do not desire to be limited to the precise application of this method shown in the present instance. While I have illustrated and described the specific embodiment of my invention. many modifications may be made without departing from the spirit of the invention, and I do not wish to be limited to the precise details of construction set forth, but desire to avail myself of all changes within the scope of the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention, What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. In a refrigerator car, a ventilating wall comprising a plurality of channelled metal sections having a plurality of spaced parallel slits in their webs with substantially all of the metal strips between said slits bent at right anglesto said web to form a ventilating grille.

2. In a refrigeratoicar, a ventilating wall comprising a plurality of channelled metal sections having a plurality of spaced parallel slits in their webs with substantially all of the metal strips between said slits bent at right angles to said web tot-011m a ventilating grille, and means for bracing said metal strips.

8. In a refrigerator car, a ventilating wall comprising a plurality of channelled metal sections having a lurality of spaced parallel slitsin their webs with substantially all: of the metal strips between said slits bentat right angles to said web to form a ventilating grille. and means for bracing said metal strips comprising metal bands riveted to said channelled members in transverse relation to saidstrips and in holding engagement with eaclr strip.

4. In a refrigeratorcar, a ventilating wall comprising a plurality of channelled n'eetal sections havin a; lurality ot spaceclpia rallel slits in their webs with substantially all of the metal strips between said slits bent at right angles to said web to form a; ventilating, grille and means for bracing said metal strips comprising corrugated metal bands riveted to said channelled members in transverse relation to said strips with said strips held in the grooves of said corrugated band.

7 5. A metal bulkhead section comprising a metal plate having a flange extending at right angles across its upper edge, a channelled vertical flange at each of its lateral edges, said plate being cut away at its bottom between said channelled flanges to form a ventilating opening, and said plate having a plurality of spaced, parallel slits at its upper end with the strips between said slits twisted at each end with their major portions bent at right angles to said plate.

6. A metal bulkhead section comprising a metal plate having a flange extending at right angles across its upper edge, a channelled vertical flange at each of its lateral edges, said plate being cut away at its bottom between said channelled flanges to form a ventilating opening, and said'plate having a plurality of spaced, parallel slits at its upper end with the strips between said slits twisted at each end with their major portions bent at right angles to said plate, and means for bracing said strips.

7. A metal bulkhead section comprising a metal plate having a flange extending at right angles across its upper edge, a channelled vertical flange at each of itslateral edges, said plate being cut away at its bottom between said channelled flangcs to form a ventilating opening, and said plate having a plu rality of spaced, parallel slits at its upper end with the strips between said slits twisted at each end with their major portions bent at right angles to said plate, and means for bracing said strips comprising metal bands riveted to said channelled members in transverse relation to said strips and in holding engagement with each strip.

8. A metal bulkhead section comprising a metal plate having a flange extending at right angles across its upper edge, a channelled vertical flange at each of its lateral edges, said plate being cut away at its bottom between said channelled flanges to form a ventilating opening, and said plate having a plurality of spaced, parallel slits at its upper end with the strips between said slits twisted at each end with their major portions bent at right angles to said plate, and means for bracing said strips comprising a corrugated metal band riveted to said channelled members in trans verse relation to said strips with said strips held in the grooves of said corrugated band.

9. In a refrigerator car, the combination of a car with a bulkhead in one end thereof, said bulkhead comprising a plurality of metal sections having legs at their bases with ventilating openings between said legs, an ice grating supported above said openings, said grating being locked from the interior of said car, said sections having their upper wall portions slit and bent at right angles between said slits to form a burglar proof grille.

10. A method of forming ventilating openings in a metal wall part of a refrigerator car comprising slitting said metal wall part with a plurality of equally spaced parallel slits, and twisting the metal between said slits so that the major part thereof extends at substantially right angles to the plane of said metal wall part, forming a grille integral with said wall part.

11. In a refrigerator car, a bulkhead section comprising a channelled sheet metal member having channels formed at each of its lateral edges, said bulkhead section also being provided with ventilating openings comprising a plurality of spaced parallel slits with substantially all of the metal strips between said slits extending at right angles to the main body of said bulkhead section.

In witness whereof, I hereunto subscribe my name this 9th day of March, 1927.

GEORGE A. HULL. 

